Remote Work in IB - Weighing Pros/Cons as an Associate and where to live?

A year ago I joined a fully remote boutique firm after some stints at larger MM firms. Associate base is ~25% less than street, and bonus is probably not going to be much. This of course being the main tradeoff for these positions, but saved ~$36-40K this year (1br apartment in SF) moving back in with my parents in the East Bay. I've loved the flexibility since I can workout daily, take care of errands in the middle of the day, and turn comments from the comfort of home instead of being chained to a cubicle. I'll note that I wouldn't mind going back to an office if it meant staying just till 7 or 8 and/or hybrid setups, but I've also sort of hated living in SF and think I'd enjoy living somewhere with better weather for a little while.

What was supposed to be a 6-month stint back home, within a few months of joining, I had multiple VPs and MDs laid off within 2 quarters of them joining. This caused me to start interviewing on the side instead of make any decisions towards a long-term lease in a non financial hub. Almost every interview process has brought up the willingness for going back to 5 days in office working late, but makes me wonder if I managed to get promoted to VP if I could side step this obsession of juniors in the office.

Main questions are : 1) Is it worth it to stay in a risky remote role (while living at home) and get that promotion before moving? 2) Seek stability from another associate role and just deal with the late nights?

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